Congress Election Process

Congress officers: Members of WMO may nominate suitably qualified candidates for these posts for submission to Congress. Nominations, including a curriculum vitae with appropriate detail on the candidate's relevant background and a photo, should be addressed to the Secretary-General of WMO, WMO Secretariat, Case Postale 2300, CH-1211 Genève 2, Switzerland. Nominations should be sent at the earliest convenience to be received no later than the day preceding the first day of the Congress in question. Members retain the right to nominate candidates from the floor prior to each election for an office.

Appointment of Secretary General: Members of WMO may nominate suitably qualified candidates for this post for submission to Congress. Nominations, including a curriculum vitae with appropriate detail on the candidate's relevant background and a photo, should be marked "Confidential" and addressed to the President of WMO, c/o of WMO Secretariat, Case Postale 2300, CH-1211 Genève 2, Switzerland. Nominations should be sent at the earliest convenience to be received no later than the day preceding the first day of the Congress in question. Members retain the right to nominate candidates from the floor prior to each election for an office.

Elections for all offices a constituent body is required to fill shall be held at each ordinary session of that constituent body.

Prior to each election for an office, a list of the candidates to be voted upon, comprising the proposals of the Nomination Committee, if any, and nominations from the floor, shall be compiled by the constituent body in session. This list shall include only the names of those persons who are eligible for the office or place(s) for which they are nominated and who have stated that they are willing to be included among the candidates for election.

In all elections, voting shall be by secret ballot. In voting, the provisions of Regulations 57, 62 and 63 shall apply. When there is only one candidate, he shall be declared elected without a ballot.

A voting slip shall be invalid if it contains more names than the number of seats to be filled, or if it includes the name of any person not appearing in the list of candidates as established by the constituent body in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 81.

In Congress, separate elections shall be held for the offices of President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President and Third Vice-President of the Organization, in that order. The President and the three Vice-Presidents shall normally belong each to a different Region.

In Congress, after the election of the President and the Vice-Presidents of the Organization, the remaining places on the Executive Council, other than those of the presidents of the associations, shall be filled in the manner specified below:

(a) A first election consisting of separate elections conducted simultaneously shall be held to fill those places on the Executive Council which need to be filled by candidates from particular Regions in order to satisfy the requirement in accordance with Article 13 (c) (ii) of the Convention that not less than four members of the Executive Council shall come from each Region. The list of candidates for this election shall be confined to the candidates belonging to the Regions which are not yet represented by four members. In this election, separate voting slips shall be used for each Region involved;

(b) A second election consisting of separate elections conducted simultaneously shall be held to fill the remaining places on the Executive Council, on the basis of a list containing the names of candidates from particular Regions in order to satisfy the requirement in accordance with Article 13 (c) (ii) of the Convention and Regulation 17, except those who have been elected under subparagraph (a). In this second election, separate voting slips shall be used for each Region involved. In addition to the provisions of Regulation 83, a voting slip shall be invalid if it contains a number of names greater, for any Region, than the maximum number of seats which remains possible for that Region, in accordance with Article 13 (c) (ii) of the Convention and Regulation 17. A voting slip containing fewer names than the number of places to be filled shall be valid and shall not be regarded as an abstention, provided it contains at least one name.

The presence of delegates of a majority of the Members shall be required to constitute a quorum for meetings of Congress.

In a vote in Congress each Member shall have one vote. However, only Members of the Organization which are States shall be entitled to vote or to take a decision on the following subjects:

Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of the Organization and of the members of the Executive Council other than the presidents of the regional associations.

Decisions shall be by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast for and against, except that elections of individuals to serve in any capacity in the Organization shall be by simple majority of the votes cast.